Five of the best private car collections in the world

December 03, 2018

Supercars

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If you love cars you will no doubt have visited places like Beaulieu National Motor Museum (https://www.beaulieu.co.uk/attractions/national-motor-museum/) in the New Forest and the London Motor Museum, and even though these wonderful museum’s have a wealth of cars on show, there are lots of private car collections which remain hidden from the public eye for most of the time.

Here we explore 5 of the biggest and best-known car collections around the world.

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah

The Sultan of Brunei is one of the richest men in the world with an estimated $20 billion net worth. His palace is the largest in the world and has diamond and gold gilded bathrooms. His car collections amount to a staggering amount of 7,000 cars meaning that if he chose to drive one a day it would take him 19 years to drive them all! Within his collection he has 382 Bentleys, 452 Ferraris along with a range of Aston Martins and Lamborghinis. He also has some limited edition and concept cars made especially for him including the first Bentley SUV ever made called the ‘Dominator’.

Jay Leno

Best known as hosting NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Jay has an impressive collection of some 286 vehicles. He has a website and TV programme called Jay Leno’s Garage which he shares news and information on his collection, including video clips and photo’s. His collection includes rare cars that are in prefect working order including a 1934 Rolls Royce Phantom II and a 1931 8-litre Bentley.

Nick Mason

Pink Floyd drummer, Nick Mason has an outstanding well-maintained collection of 40 cars. His preference definitely falls to Italian super sports cars with a special interest in models and makes that hold a historical significance in the motoring world. It has been reported that with his first pay check from the band he bought a second-hand Lotus Elan. His collection is not open to the public but his cars, which are all in good working order, are frequently seen out racing at prominent racing evets such as Le Mans Classic. From a Bugatti Type 35 a vintage Birdcage Maserati and several Ferraris there’s certainly a super car for all tastes!

Gerald Lopez

A self-made entrepreneur, Gerald Lopez has a range of classic cars to make your mouth water. He has fingers in all sorts of business pies and invests in all kinds of new technologies as well as the energy sector. From 2009 to 2015 was President of the Formula 1 Lotus F1 Team (https://www.lotuscars.com/racing/legend-lotus-f1) and is still a shareholder. His private collection has been shown on Top Gear and consists of Ferraris, Porsches, Bugattis amongst other exotic sounding car makes.

Ralph Lauren

Fashion Designer Ralph Lauren owns what may be the highest-valued private collection in the world, estimated at about $300 million. His collection consists of over 70 cars but include rarities like the 1938 Bugatti 57SC Atlantic (only one of four ever built and only one of two that still exist) and a 1929 Bentley 4.5-litre ‘Blower’ which took part in the Le Mans races during 1930, 1932 and 1933. Almost everyone of his collection of Ferraris, Mercedes, Bugattis and McLaren F1 are red.

If you’re thinking about starting your own private collection, why not visit a super car dealer like H R Owen and see how far your wallet will stretch!